First Impression and Report by Intern Ms. Casey Lord

An untouchable, indestructible army

Casey Lord is interning with Sambhali Trust in Jodhpur, India, an NGO whose mission is to empower Harijan (“untouchable”) women by providing them an environment free from discrimination and home duties where they can learn new skills in sewing, embroidery and basic English. Casey is particularly involved with the sewing initiative of the Trust and is hoping to use her time in Jodhpur to strengthen the Trust’s sustainability by improving the market prospects for Sambhali’s handicrafts.

Fighting the mounting summer temperatures of the Thar desert, I carefully wrapped, pleated and pinned my new cotton sari into position this morning in preparation for another meeting with Jodhpur bureaucracy. Saraswati has checked my tucks and folds and given me a red bindi - I look the part and I’m ready to go. Today I am going to the police station on behalf of a local Harijan woman whose life has been turned upside-down by her betraying, polygamist husband and in-laws. Pinkie’s husband has married and had a child with a fourteen-year old girl, bringing his ‘new family’ into the home where Pinkie and her children already live. The in-laws, also sharing the house, are favoring the ‘new family’ and are abusing Pinkie in an attempt to expel her. Pinkie has nowhere to go and has no control over the situation. I will stand with six other (also Harijan) women and protest for her basic right to a life without threat or violence.

This is not exactly an average day of my internship, but it’s certainly not unusual. There are forty-five participants who meet daily at Sambhali Trust but the outreach of the project is somewhat larger. Govind, the trust’s founder, is an incredibly dedicated and passionate man who is entirely committed to the welfare of these girls. His efforts overflow the trust’s permeable boundaries and touch the lives of the girls’ families and other needy members living in the community. The girls at the trust are encouraged to stand up for themselves, act on their own initiative and ultimately build a sense of worth and solidarity so deeply rooted that it will stay with them when they leave the project and bear fruit to a life more successful than that of their parents. Thus, when Pinkie approached Govind in dire straights she met not only a man who would refuse to turn her away but an army of forty-five young girls all ready to fight for her cause.

I am almost halfway through my nine-week internship and have had the opportunity to learn a great deal about working with a grassroots organization and have become fully immersed in the local culture. I’m reaching a transitional stage of applying what I have learnt about the needs of the trust and its participants into a personal project, a project that coheres with the trust’s mission and serves to increase its sustainability. Quality control and rigorous management are recurrent problems that NGOs with a sewing program face everyday, and I hope that my Western background can bring an alternative light into the organization. By researching successfully established organizations in the region Sambhali can develop a model on which to base its growth, and as the organization evolves into a self-sustainable project it can endeavor to support its participants even once they have left.

Govind has great dreams about the future of Sambhali and its sister organizations and I feel very excited to be a part of the realization of these dreams. I am grateful to FSD for providing me with the opportunity to work with such a special organization, to form a mutual relationship of new knowledge and experience, and for allowing me to join forces with a very unique army of empowered women.

First Impression of the Sambhali Trust

When I walked into the Durag Niwas guest house the Sambhali girls were already waiting for me, standing in the doorway ready to greet me with the traditional red bindi paste and a beautiful garland of aromatic flowers. They escorted me upstairs and welcomed me by performing a traditional dance (in which I was encouraged to participate!). Then, one by one, they introduced themselves in English. I was very touched and felt speechless when it was my turn. It was clear from the girls’ faces and hospitality that they were enthralled by having a visitor; but not as shy as you might expect. In the fifteen months that they have been here, strong bonds have formed between them and they have grown into confident young women with a strong sense of solidarity. In the hours that followed I watched the girls as they chatted with one another, worked at their embroidery and sat down to eat their lunch. There is a strong contrast between the girls who are new to Sambhali Trust and those who have been here since the beginning. The effects of the trust are evident in each participant and I am very impressed with the results.

I am filled with a sense of awe at the challenge that lies ahead of me and I hope that the knowledge and understanding I have of these girls’ backgrounds and culture is sufficient for me to begin to work to help them. When they girls are together they seem larger than the sum of their parts and I can immediately appreciate how much work it must’ve taken to achieve such solidarity. I only hope that this self-assurance stays true to them when they leave the project, and that they can walk home and into the rest of their lives with the courage to stand up to the difficulties and pressures they are certain to face.

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Setrawa Project participants in Jodhpur

Setrawa Project participant Dhapu, Hemlata (daughter of Dhapu) and Ms. Rekha (teacher at Setrawa Project) have been invited to come to Jodhpur and stay with the Sambhali Jodhpur project, learn new things, learn what goes on here.

Techniques from art and craft by Ms. Tamana have been shared with Setrawa project participants, they stayed for 5 days. I have been to Setrawa a couple of times since no volunteers have been coming for this project. Recentely I have stayed over nights in the project building in Setrawa. Living there is soo simple and beautiful.

Durag Niwas Guest House:- Offseason, no foreign tourists, can not afford helpers, therefore reduced the number of staff. Sand Storms now and then make everything dusty. A few things like the bathroom taps, showers, electrcity related furninshing, the interior and exterior is under maintainance. GUEST HOUSE IS OPEN !

Family:- Mukta and Ayush are gone to Neemuch (Mukta's father's place) for a month, this is where Mukta goes every year to have some time as holiday. Mukta's sister and her children have also joined in. Without Mukta and Ayush the house is lonely and empty. Mumy does well, we have changed her Doc for Diabetes, she feels lot better with the new one's priscription. Mumy does all the cooking and looks after the Guest House, she likes it very much, the food is soo traditionaly prepared (oily and flavored) that, instead of loosing weight I have gained another 4.5 Kilos in 10 days.
Shakti and grandma do well, Bunty goes to his family every evening. I am doing fine, trying to loose weight, thinking of many ways but all require a lot of thinking, Lazyyyyyyy A**! Too boaring - nothing much to do, every time I open my email, which is usualy 10 times in a day for new emails, no emails come. I hope and pray that this year after Jaipur Bomb Blasts, the tourism wouldn't stop of have much bad effect. The whole incident is not even talked about anymore. Now it is the Gujjar community people wanting reservation in Government, which is a problem , but something will workout for sure in 2 weeks time. It will be quiet again but such incidents effect tourism and there are soooo many people surviving on this buisness.
Taking Ms. Casey for field trip to Setrawa Project for 2 days from tomorrow.